CHL Final TONIGHT! Frolunda Gothenburg vs Sparta Prague

Frolunda Gothenburg host Sparta Prague in the third Champions Hockey League Final, which will be played on Tuesday, 7 February 2017 at Frolundaborgs Isstadion, starting at 19:05 CET.

Frolunda Gothenburg and Sparta Prague are two of the most recognizable names in European hockey right now. While Sparta is the bigger name with respect to history, in recent years Frolunda have dominated European club hockey. This is their third straight trip to the CHL Final – they won last year, and now want a second straight title. Sparta will be out to stop them and win their first European club title, after previously losing in title games in 2000 and 2008.

These teams have met previously in a European championship – in the bronze medal game of the European Hockey League in 1996-97, Frolunda beat Sparta 4-3. The only player on either roster in this game is Sparta captain Jaroslav Hlinka.

Both of these teams have demonstrated that they can play both offensively and defensively – alloing about 1.5 goals against over the course of the competition, and scoring at least 3 (or in Frlunda's case, nearly 4). This game could get decided by special teams, as both teams are dangerous on the power play and will therefore both want to avoid taking penalties.

“I don't know Frolunda specifically, but I expect the Swedish style, which is five players fore-checking and back-checking, playing compact, strong, straightforward hockey,” said Sparta top scorer Lukas Pech. “I'm sure we can expect a tough game. They've been to the Final twice and won it last year. In terms of being the top team in Europe, we want to be one step better.”

After playing the last two Finals on the road, Frolunda play this one at home, where they are very tough to beat, both in the CHL and SHL. If playing the Final at home makes Frolunda favourites, however, it's only by a slight margin. Sparta have been remarkably successful on the road in the CHL, where they have not lost yet. That includes three wins in Sweden already. Add that to the fact that Sparta have been hot domestically as of late, with Frolunda sputtering somewhat.

“It’s a big game, a big title, and we’re really excited for the game. We’ll focus on our own game, but they have a little bit more of an experienced team than we do. Sparta are a skilled team and you look at who they’ve beaten to get here and can see that they're are a very tough team,” admitted Frolunda captain and top scorer Joel Lundqvist. “We’re prepared for a very difficult game. When it’s packed in this rink, it’s loud, so it’s going to be a good atmosphere and a good night for hockey, hopefully.”

Domestically, Frolunda started off on fire but have cooled off as of late. They have only won two of their last seven games, including two losses to the Vaxjo Lakers, who have now passed them atop the SHL standings.

Mirroring their CHL season, Sparta started slowly but are now hot. They've won nine of their last 12 games, including wins against the top two teams in the league – Bili Tygri Liberec and Ocelari Trinec. They sit in third place and have their sights on climbing higher.

Right now, however, the domestic leagues take a back seat to the CHL Final.

“We’ve been thoroughly preparing for the Final for about four weeks. We know we have to play better than in some of our recent games. We know Sparta – they have a very strong and experienced team, but we have to be on top of our game first and foremost,” said Frolunda coach Roger Ronnberg. About Sparta he said, “That team is a bit older on average, so more experienced. We enjoy playing in the CHL, it’s an hour and fun at the same time to travel across Europe playing different teams. It’s a very important competition to us.”

Opposite number Jiri Kalous added that he's done some research on his opponents.“I watched Frolunda’s league game last Thursday and they’re a strong skating team. They’re very active with the puck all over the ice, they don’t give up on anything and they’re very fast in transitional play,” said the 52-year old. “It’s no wonder that they’re top of the SHL, but we have to focus on our game and see what they come up with – if they continue to play the way expect, or it becomes more tactical. If our players stick to our game plan, however, there’s always a chance. We’ve proven this against very good teams already in this year’s CHL.”

Closer look: Frolunda Gothenburg

(9-0-1-2, 28 points, 46:17)

Frolunda Gothenburg didn't start their CHL title defence so strongly. They were expected to win Group A, and they did, but it was a lot harder than expected. First it was a narrow 2-1 win in Wolfsburg, followed by a 3-2 overtime loss in Pardubice. When they got home to Gothenburg, things seemed to be getting back on track with a 5-2 win over Pardubice, which wrapped up the group. In the group's last game, with a lot at stake for the visitors, Wolfsburg won 3-2 to become the group's other qualifier.

In the Round of 32, they lost 3-2 in Minsk, and followed that up with a big 5-0 win at home to take the aggregate victory, and signal that the giant had awoken. They've had little trouble with either CHL opponent since then, winning seven straight games all by at least three goals. First they humbled Eisbaren Berlin in the Round of 16, winning 10-2 on aggregate. Up next was SHL rivals Linkoping HC, with Frolunda prevailing 9-2 over two games. They put away their Semi-Final with a 5-1 home win over Fribourg, then won 4-0 in the return game to clinch a third straight Final appearance.

Joel

Lundqvist

3+10, +8

Top Forward & CRAMO Top Scorer: Joel Lundqvist is the undisputed leader of this Frolunda team, and is a finalist for the CHL's NordicBet MVP Trophy. Aside from a three-year stint with the NHL's Dallas Stars, the twin brother of lengendary netminder Henrik is a career Indian, and he leads by example. At 34, Lundqivst is coming off his best season in 2015-16 where he posted career-high statistics and led Frolunda to the CHL and SHL titles. Now he wants to repeat both, and he'll have the chance at one on Tuesday. Of course, he's joined by CHL veteran forward such as Mats Rosseli-Olsen, Johan Sundstrom, Robin Figren and Nicklas Lasu, who have also been to the CHL Final in back-to-back years.

Henrik

Tommernes

3+6, +9

Top Defenceman: Henrik Tommernes was one of the best defencemen in last season's Swedish Hockey League, finishing fifth among d-men in the league scoring league and leading all defencemen in points in the CHL. Tommernes scored 9 goals on the power play in the SHL, which was second in the whole league. This season, he's once again leading SHL defencemen with 33 points, which is tied for tops among all Frolunda players with Sundstrom. He started slowly in the CHL win no points in the group stage, but now has 9 in 8 playoff games. Jacob Larsson, John Nyberg and new recruit Jonathan Sigalet are other players to watch on the back end.

Johan

Gustafsson

92.57 %

Top Goaltender: Johan Gustafsson came to Frolunda before last season and had a really tough start, quite quickly being recognized as a backup to Lars Johansson, who was having a career year. Gustafsson would get his chance to shine as Johansson was injuried in the playoffs, and Gustafsson took advantage of that chance. He turned out to be a huge reason why Frolunda managed to win the SHL title. Now, he's the clear starting goalie on Sweden's top team. Backup Dan Bakala has also played well when given the chance, so the Indians are confident in whoever they have between the pipes right now, but Gustafsson will surely be the man for the Final.

Click here for team statistics

Closer look: Sparta Prague

(6-1-3-2, 23 points, 36:18)

Sparta began the season by playing the first CHL game in Poland and spoiled the party with a 7-2 road win. Up next was Farjestad Karlstad on home ice, and the Swedish club struck twice in the third to win 2-1. In the return engagement with Cracovia, Sparta fired 65 shots on goal, but the game was tied 4-4 before a late power-play goal decided it in Sparta's favour. In their last game in Karlstad, Sparta needed a regulation win to take the group, but surrendered a last-minute equalizer. They won in overtime, but Farjestad's win over Cracovia in the last game dropped Sparta to second.

In the Round of 32 against Karpat Oulu, defence was thought to be a concern, but the team gave up only 1 goal on 37 shots over more than 120 minutes of hockey, and won the series in overtime. Then in the Round of 16, they lost 4-2 at home to HV71 Jonkoping, but rallied to win 5-0 in Sweden to take the series on aggregate. Then after opening the Quarter-Finals with a 1-1 tie in Bern, won 4-1 at home the following week to secure their spot in the Semi-Finals against the Vaxjo Lakers. There, they opened with their third win in Sweden this CHL season, 2-1, and returned home to win 4-0 before a jubilant crowd of 12,136.

Lukas

Pech

6+6, +5

Top Forward & CRAMO Top Scorer: Lukas Pech leads the team offensively in the CHL with 12 points, and is second on the team domestically with 42 points, behind Petr Vrana's 48. At 33, Pech has played his entire career in the Czech Republic, and is having his finest season in years. Like Lundqvist, he is a finalist for the NordicBet MVP Trophy. He is just one of many talented forwards the team has, led by the top line of Vrana, captain Jaroslav Hlinka and new recruit Michal Repik, who has only played in two CHL games this season, but is scoring at nearly a point per game in the Extraliga. The trio has been especially hot in recent games, both even strength and on the power play, so Frolunda will surely want to stay out of the penalty box.

Juraj

Mikus

3+3, +4

Top Defenceman: Slovak Juraj Mikus is a steady presence on the Sparta blueline, both offensively and defensively. With experience in the AHL, KHL and World Championships, the 28-year-old has been an anchor and the power-play quarterback they've needed. When in the lineup, fellow Slovak Michal Cajkovsky is a valuable asset with his big shot from the point. The team was in disarray early in the season defensively, but have gotten their act together and have been very stingy in the knock-out stage against some very strong offensive opponents – Karpat, HV71, Bern and Vaxjo – allowing only 8 goals in 8 games combined (and 4 of them were in 1 game).

Tomas

Popperle

93.88 %

Top Goaltender: In the CHL group stage and early in the Extraliga season goaltending was an area of concern for Sparta. However, in the Round of 32 against Karpat, Tomas Popperle was spectacular, stopping 36 of 37 shots over two games. In the Extraliga, the play of himself and backup Filip Novotny has improved notably as well, probably due in large part to the overall improvement of the team's defensive game. Novotny played both games against HV71, Popperle did likewise against Bern and Vaxjo, and both goalies have posted similar numbers in both the Extraliga and CHL. Popperle will be the man in the Final.

Click here for team statistics.